Whitebark Stream Within that nightmare, I met a young survivor.

Set the afternoon of the 28th, all welcome!

When their time together alone came to an end, Artyom was loathe to depart Dawn's company. He felt torn as the pair bid one another a fond farewell, albeit temporarily, and recognised the urge to follow as she loped away. He'd been practically glued to her through the duration of her heat and that habit was tough to shake, as he feared other males could still make attempt at having her to themselves.

He sincerely hoped their union would come to fruition, having better warmed to the idea of offspring since securing their mateship. It didn't happen the way he'd miticulously planned throughout his entire adult life, but his silver Alphess had breathed new life into his existence. They could make it work, and, no matter their initial uncertainties, Artyom was eager to begin preparation for fatherhood.

He trailed along a well-worn patrol route through the snow, content with his ponderings beneath a cool Winter sun as he went.

I hope you don't mind me changing this into a toxicologist thread! If so I'll change it!

Kora wasn't exactly sure why she decided to trek along a patroling trail. Whether it was because she needed a moment to think the recent events over or if she just needed to stretch her legs, but either way she set off. Even with Kora's clubfoot, she could manage to limp in a rhythmic pattern so that she was practically walking, just in a much more complicated way. Today, her limp was almost unrecognizable as the pattern continued. 

What was surprising to most was not the fact she had survived with a bum foot, but the fact that she could partially run with it. Kora knew that with her foot, she would be an easy kill. So she had taken time in previous months to teach herself to run, dodge attacks. It was true, she wasn't in shape to fight but Kora could defend herself with things other than strength. For example plants. To some, it sounds stupid. But really, there were certain plants that can injure wolves. 

One of which is what she saw in front of a wolf she hadn't noticed had been further ahead on the track until now. "Hey! Watch out!" Kora called to the other. Now 'running' Kora aimed to ram into the side of the wolf if he didn't heed her warning. "Don't take another step!" the woman yelled over to her assumed packmate, she was gaining speed now. It took her second to recognize the plant but once she did, she knew it was dangerous to even touch. Hoping the wolf would stop in time the stumbling lady called again; "That's dangerous! Watch out!" 

No problem!  :D

He meandered laziy, failed to realise he'd worked his way onto a section of the trail amid trees that was almost entirely free of snow. Artyom's thoughts were elsewhere as he moved, until the frantic call of another from behind stopped him in his tracks.

A golden ear swivelled and his crown was swift to follow, swinging to the side so he could peer over his shoulder at the stranger's stumbling approach.  He furrowed his brow, confused, and merely blinked in her direction as she barked once more for his attention.

The ranger backed up as she drew closer, concerned that she may have been injured (considering her gait) and perhaps begun to lose her mind with the fever, as he recalled Ana to have done in the final week leading to her death. His earthen eyes remained on her form, cautious and uncertain of the odd female's strange way of introducing herself, until she drew attention to what was on his path directly in front of him.

A plant, rugged and probably half-dead from the weather, perhaps, but apparently dangerous. Artyom felt unconvinced though he veered away anyway, keen to keep her from freaking out at him. "Dangerous?" Artyom parroted, gaze flitting from wolf to flora, then wolf again in a silent request for an explanation.

Watching as the wolf ahead of her stopped and actually took a few steps back, Kora slowed. Back into her symphony of hobbling the woman was now back to a normal speed. Now that she was in hearing range she could hear as the man copied her; dangerous? "Yup, dangerous." Kora affirmed matter-of-factly as she came to stand beside him. "That," the woman said gesturing to the plant a few feet away from the two wolves "is a whakato whakatoi. Or in your language, a wandering jew plant." the lady said afformative. 

"If all you do is touch it the least that would happen would be a rash, which could get worse. But if you try to ease the pain by licking it, you could consume some of the oils or poison. That's when it becomes a possibly fatal problem. Either that or if you get it in your eyes." Kora warned the man. Plants were never something to mess around with willy-nilly, you never know what could be poisonous or completely harmless. Unless of course, you do. That's a different story.

Artyom waited patiently for an explanation, earthen eyes flitting from the young she-wolf to the withered plant that could apparently kill him. From his perspective it looked relatively harmless, especially considering the frost had damaged it so badly. She went on to share how it might bring harm to him and the world "fatal" stood out above all others. He furrowed his brow; "it can kill you even if it is already dead?" Because the cold season would've destroyed it already, he felt certain.

The golden ranger turned to face her again to say, "thank you," and managed a thin smile - genuinely grateful for her care despite his quiet reluctance to believe that some ugly fauna could truly cause him such harm. "I don't believe we've met before?"

It can kill you even if it's dead? "Yes actually. It may not be as deadly, but the oils can remain on the plant for a long time. Sometimes even through winter." the lady explained before going silent again. Smiling, the woman dragged her dark lavender gaze across the man. Forcing him to become lodged into her memory before meeting his eyes once again.

"I don't think we have" she replied with a kind grin as she tilted her head sideways an inch and the apex of her left ear began to droop. "My name is Kora." the ivory woman spoke, taking initiative. "I'm sorry if I startled you earlier. I didn't mean to if I did." 

A contemplative hum formed in his chest as the strange wolfess answered his question. He supposed there was no real reason not to trust her word, considering she shared these facts not to bring him harm but quite the opposite. Artyom, content to cast the topic aside for the time being, turned attention wholly to introduction.

"Artyom," he returned with a polite sweep of his tail, despite the discomfort that came with her eye contact. The ranger was respectful of the natural hierarchy and with him being of a higher rank, he could not deny that small prickle of frustration at her direct stare. "That's alright," he told her following an apology for potentially spooking him, then carried on to fish for information on who she really was: "how did you come to know about this... wandering jew plant?"

How did you come to know about this... wandering jew plant? A second passed, then another as she pondered how to answer this question. Kora really didn't know how to answer in a non-creepy and non-viscous way. "Well, with my foot I have to find other ways to defend myself." she began. It sounded good so far. 

"And sometimes... a good way of doing this is with your mind, not strength. So I use my knowledge and other's lack of knowledge against them." Taking a bit of a turn but we can go with it. "Plants are a good way of poisoning others and just hoping that you scare them off and don't kill them." Not good... not good... abort! Abort!

Her mind was scrambling trying to find a way to fix what she had just blurted but instead, her body disobeyed and just cast a look to the ground and the looked up again and smiled. No... no. What?! How? Why? Great now I look like a psychopath, murderer, and a creep. "I mean... umm... I never want them to die. B-but I don't wanna die either. Ya know?" she asked, cringing at her last words. 

So much for good first impressions. "What I'm saying is that plants can be dangerous, and I use that to my advantage. I have to protect myself somehow, as all wolves do. I just can't do it as well with power, so I use intelligence." Now whether Artyom decided to accept her explanation or not, was beyond her control.

Plants are a good way of poisoning others...

Uhm what?

Scare them off and don't kill them.

Okay, so it went from bad to worse.

Artyom gawked at his newest acquaintance, brown eyes wide with surprise to hear such ill intent spill from the maw of this delicate wolfess. The ranger had not expected her explanation at all - surely "they're interesting" would've been a suitable response - and he found himself stunned to silence as he continued to blink dumbly down at her.

"Well," he started, pausing to clear his tightened throat with an awkward cough, "that's, uhm... nice to hear?" Some amusement in his tone in effort to mask the discomfort he felt, the embarrassment at not knowing how to respond. "Remind me never to get on your bad side!"

The man seemed disturbed at her words and she had to admit, she didn't blame him. Kora could've punched herself for spilling what seemed to be the most sociopathic thing she had ever heard. She wasn't the most sociable person out there, but now she just felt like an idiot and wouldn't mind hiding out in a den for the next million years.

Or at least until dinosaurs managed to roam the Earth again but this time with dino social classes and names like Karensaur, classified by the fact that her mating call was done through a cell phone and aimed at somebody named 'the manager'. "I-I" was all she sputtered as she tried to regain the comfortable air that had once surrounded the two. The jest was taken with an awkward laugh from Kora and obvious discomfort. 

"That came out... darker than expected. I didn't mean it like that. I just... have to find some way to defend myself and my mother was a toxicologist and had already taught me a few things and I found it stunning how a plant could do so much and how little some know about them and figured that was the best route and I only use the actually harmful ones in special cases and I promise that I would never hurt any of you and I'm sorry I didn't mean to frighten you or anything an-" Kora realized she had been ranting whilst trying to redeem herself and cut her speech off abruptly with a snap of her jaws. A look of disbelief clouded her face, a thick fog over the once glorious meadow. Her eyes still clearly showing her anxiety; her nervousness on display.

He seemed to have struck a nerve, sending the she-wolf into an awkward ramble. Artyom listened quietly to what she had to say, to her unnecessary defense, and felt the guilt rise within him for drawing attention to her strange use if fauna.

"It's fine," the ranger attempted to soothe, and reached out with an apology: "I'm sorry to have made you uncomfortable."

Artyom reverted to trying to comfort the woman and apologize, his soothing words drifted over the air like feathers; soft and calm but eventually falling. Kora shook her head with a newfound determination to set this right. "No no. It's my fault." the lady admitted. A breathy sigh escaped her "I should be the one who's sorry" Her disbelief had lifted, revealing the once again meadow, the sun seemed to be back within the ivory lady.

He felt bad, and a little sorry for Kora as she seemed to appear a little deflated at this very awkward first impression. Artyom wondered more of the she-wolf's background. Perhaps social encounters were not her strong point, something that the gilded ranger had always been comfortable to partake in. 

Still, all was not lost. Kora might have accidentally made herself look rather maddened with her talk of weapons made from fauna, but Artyom was keen to set their comradery straight on the right path once more. "How about you make it up to me then," he suggested with a playful, joking tone: "accompany me on the remainder of my patrol? You can save me from any other potential by plant attack." A cheeky grin and a cheerful sweep of his tail, his warm eyes alight with encouragement.

Determination seemed to set itself within Artyom's eyes as he invited the woman to join him on the rest of his patrol. Kora could sense his change in tone, the lightheartedness within his speech. The lady smiled as her tail began shifting, she bowed her head mockingly. "How awful it would be if sir Artyom of Whitebark got injured by such ravenous greenery!" A smirk crossed the lady's face as she spoke with obvious playfulness.

Bringing her head up the lady nodded and let her eyes put forth her only worry: you must forgive me if I'm a little slow. Her lilac gaze grazed her mangled paw before setting itself upon the other once more. Kora turned in the direction Artyom was going when they had first met before allowing her paw to sweep in that direction "Shall we begin?"

Fading here.  :)

He was glad to venture from the realm of discomfort and into one of light-heartedness. There was a quiet appreciation for Kora's good humour despite the awkwardness of their first meeting, for her desire to join him on what remained of his patrol. She laughed easily with him and Artyom wagged his tail, content to carry on in this less serious manner.

"It's not every day that I get to play the role of 'damsel in distress'," he joked, pressing on at a smooth pace - mindful of the wolfess' disability but unwilling to draw attention to it for fear of rousing any hard feelings.